


The Media

by Arisocal



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Birthday, Building Relationship, F/M, Friendship, Gossip, Holidays, Romance, media
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-19
Updated: 2018-07-19
Packaged: 2019-06-12 21:36:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,238
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15349266
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Arisocal/pseuds/Arisocal
Summary: Captain America is a public figure, which means there are daily talks, gossips, and rumors when it comes to him--his whereabouts and his redhead companion--the Black Widow.





	The Media

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! Just a major heads up--this is a LONG read. This was a piece I wrote little by little with time. I wanted a one-shot but I wanted a long dragged out one....I was just not in the mood to carry a plot and create chapters. So you end up with like 10,000 words to read all at once. SORRY! But I hope you enjoy this as much as I enjoyed writing something just cute and sweet when it comes to Steve and Natasha!

**Incident One:**

Steve never really thought about it before.

They were all good friends, teammates and they had sort of become one extremely unique family. The sort of family that none of them really had, which meant it was the next best thing. They were all known to spend time together. Occasionally, he and Sam would got out and jog along the park, where they certainly attracted the public’s attention, but they were good at waving and running off. For the most part, there was always something published or broadcasted when it came to Captain America and his whereabouts.

Steve was used to them and he generally shrugged them off or never bothered reading them. No one else in the team brought them up, so it was safe to assume they all could care less.

Only this one caused him to stop and actually pick up the magazine while he was rushing through the grocery store to pick up some essentials. The particular magazine--actually there were stacks of them displayed--consisted of him and Natasha. The cover just had their faces, taking up the entire thing but the headline boldly said: “Captain America and Black Widow Finally Being Public?” Below the caption had a small picture of the two of them, at the diner. It was blurry, but the magazine noted that page 17 would elaborate more on the story.

Steve looked around to make sure he was not the center of attention. It was the middle of the day and most of New York’s working citizens were at work, which was the perfect time to run errands without being caught. When there had been no sight of anyone looking his way, he flipped through the pages and there it was, a bigger and better quality of him and Natasha, talking over their meal. And then there was another one as she leaned in. where to the public, she was aiming for a kiss as the article illustrated, however, she was simply being a smart ass in that moment and leaning in to tell him she won--because her milkshake flavor was way better than his. There were more pictures as they stepped out, him holding the door open while she put her coat on. That particular evening was only three days ago and it was like any other meals they shared. He shrugged it off, placed the magazine back on the shelf and that was when he noticed he was no longer alone. There were two teenage girls flipping through the same magazine.

“They’re always out together,” One of them spoke. “They have to be dating.”

“Yeah, remember that video of them in Rome? They were so cozy!” The other one gushed, neither one of them really looking up from the article.

“He’s only ever seen out with her, so they have to be!”

“But no one has caught them kissing yet, it’s weird!”

“They’re trying to keep it away from the media.”

“I wonder how that is though? Romantically being involved with the Black Widow? Isn’t she like a killer?”

Steve wondered just how often he and Natasha were really published by the media. The Avengers were known not to really dig into tabloids. The most they kept in touch with the real world was the news and that was mainly because it was usually them being blamed for the mess. Regardless of the sudden curiosity, he went off to get the pancake mix and coffee that Natasha had asked for and he had to chuckle at the irony.

What if she had tag along with him on this errand like she had intended to? Would she have stopped to look at the magazine or ignore it? He figured she would ignore it. Natasha was not really a sentimental person, which meant he could not see her reading gossips, especially about her.

\--

**Incident Two:**

The following day, Natasha flashed him an everlasting smile, which generally meant she wanted something. Sometimes it was a good thing, like she simply wanted to eat out and other times, it was because she knew he would be mad at her with the words that were to follow after the smile as she informs him about going on a solo dangerous mission. Today, as things have been quiet lately, he hopes she’s just poking her head in and giving him that make-you-weak-to-the-knees smile because she wants to drag him to something. And he was right. She informed him that she wanted to go to the Bryant Park Winter Village tonight because she loves the hot chocolate there and Wanda is ditching her to go see a movie with Vision.

“So I’m just your backup plan?” He joked as she sat on head.

She pressed her lips together as she tried her best to give him one of her famous liners.

“Well,” she smirked. “I want to go around 8pm when it’s dark and lit up and I think that’s usually past your bedtime, old man.”

“Very funny,” Steve rolled his eyes. “But yes I will go with you.”

“Great,” she clapped, bouncing off his bed. “It’s a date,” she winked at him before heading for the door.

Steve just chuckled at her playful personality.

“Hey jackass,” Natasha’s voice filled the hallway.

“Good morning to you too,” Sam’s voice followed.

A few seconds later, Sam poked his head through Steve’s already open door.

“Hey Cap,” he greeted. “Rhodey and I are going to watch the hockey game tonight, want to go?”

Steve shook his head.

“Already made plans with Nat,” he spoke. “But thanks.”

Sam nodded. He lingered for a moment and Steve expected him to say something, instead he just bowed his way out and closed the door.

\-----

Natasha was right, the hot chocolate was good. It had just the right amount of cinnamon to kick off the chocolate taste. It also helped that Natasha was in all smiles as they strolled the small park with vendors left and right. Moments like these were rare for them, but as of lately, they have been spending a lot of their time together, enjoying what they could for the time being. It was a matter of any minute now that someone causes a huge mess and the Avengers would need to fight something or  _ someone _ .

“Maybe I should get Wanda a present,” Natasha spoke, looking at the shop with a lot of socks. “She said she got me something for Christmas, isn’t it too early though?”

Steve eyed the shop. He never associates socks with Wanda before, but if Natasha somehow thought of her by seeing the displays of varying socks then he figured that sounded like a nice gesture. Natasha made her way to the displays of socks and Steve stood back, holding their to-go cups of hot chocolates. While she busied herself with finding the perfect gifts for Wanda, he looked around the atmosphere.

While he grew up and lived in Brooklyn, he had never done any of the winter villages before. He had not realized how much in the spirit the whole place could put a person. It was still early in November, but the holidays were ringing in soon and for once, he actually felt like that little boy awaiting Thanksgiving and Christmas. The Avengers were never really home, which meant that Thanksgiving or Christmas were hardly something they discussed. Come to think of it, they never really talked about birthdays or any other holidays for that matter.

He looked up at Natasha and wondered when her birthday is, or if she even knew. And then he wondered if he should get her something for Christmas.

“Hope she likes them,” Natasha came walking towards him, holding up a small medium paper bag.

He returned her eager smile as she successfully purchased her first holiday gift of the season.

If Steve ever had to pinpoint a moment where she looked above and beyond beautiful (because she was always so beautiful to him), it was then. It was how the holiday lights sparkled in the reflection of her captivating green orbs and the way her hair fell perfectly along her shoulders and how her smile just lit up her whole face. Everything about her was breathtaking and Steve wished he had the courage to tell her that.

There had been numerous times in the past few years that he wondered how he and Natasha actually became close friends. How she ended up being the first person he thought of when he woke up and the last before he closed his eyes for the night. He never understood how their once-upon-a-banters turned into long confiding conversations about their weaknesses and hopes. How did the golden boy scout find comfort, friendship, and admiration for one of the most skilled assassins in the world? More importantly, how was Natasha Romanoff, literally one of the sweetest person he knows (except she would kill him if he ever said that, so he keeps it to himself), also is one of the coldest person he knows? She could be given the news that literally turns her whole world upside down, and not show one single emotion. And yet, the most unpredictable thing can cause her to shed a tear and crawling into his arms. On top of everything he has ever questioned about his life,  _ how did he madly fall in love with her _ ? How did he end up aching for the woman who claims love is child’s play and has sworn up and down that she has never once considered the idea of love--just lust.  _ Because everyone has needs for that. _

“You’re staring, Soldier,” Natasha raised her eyebrow at him.

He felt himself blush but just moved his arm around her back, to encourage both of them to keep walking.

“When’s your birthday?” he asked her out of the blue.

She paused, which meant he had caught her completely off guard and he felt bad. Perhaps she did not know and he only caused her painful memories at the thought. Natasha has given him glimpse of her past and she rarely had any fond stories to share when it came to her life back then.

Steve saw her shrug in front of him, her back to him. He concluded he would not really be getting an answer from her, so he placed his hand on her back--something he realized has become a habit when he’s escorting them forward.

“November 22nd,” she spoke as they walked, his arm still around her back.

“Oh,” It was all that came out of his mouth, but his mind was running a mile a minute with thoughts.

His mind could not help but point out that her birthday is only a couple weeks away and had he never asked today, she probably would have just let the day pass on by without saying anything. That though put a stab to his heart. But then again, he was ashamed that he never asked her before, because that meant they had gone through multiple birthdays of hers and he never greeted her.

“It’s almost coming up,” He managed to say as they turned to the next isle of vendors.

“Yeah,” Natasha spoke softly. “I didn’t think about it.”

And Steve expected that. He hardly thought about his birthday, except for that he shared it with the country and Tony always made an overly big deal about it just to make him groan at all the attention he definitely did not want.

“Cannolis?” Natasha grinned, her eyes focused on the cube filled with desserts.

Steve let out a soft laugh and motioned towards it, knowing she was going to grab one, whether he followed her or not.  
It was then that he realized they had been watched. As he looked around the crowd, people were whispering and smiling at them and some were even bold enough to hold out their phone--most likely taking pictures or videos. Which reminded him, he needed to look up that video of them in Rome that those teenagers were gushing about at the grocery store because he could not remember them being _cozy_ there. Then again, they had fallen in such great comfort with one another, the gestures here and there that may be foreign to the outsiders when it came to them could easily be forgotten.

Steve knew Natasha had seen the stares and the phones being held up. She was a spy, a great one for the matter. And based on the eye rolling she gave as she pushed her way into the little shop, she was well aware. Just as predicted though, she did not seem to care. That was Natasha, she let the public talk and as far as Steve knew, she never listened.

“What flavor do you want?” she asked as she stood in line. “I’m buying.”

“Just the regular one,” he decided, looking around their surroundings.

People still had their eyes glued on them, which was not exactly his concerns for the moment. He was more interested in venturing off to the next shops and getting Natasha something for her birthday, without her noticing. The idea seemed impossible though because there were eyes everywhere and if he were to excuse himself from Natasha, she would not question him, she might just find out about it on some magazine cover though.

So he stayed put and decided he will go out sometime soon and pick out something for her. Maybe even ask if she would like to grab dinner on her birthday. It was worth a shot.

They spent the rest of the evening browsing shops, buying random trinkets and snacking some more. It was just a bunch of wandering and conversations between them, but it made Steve realize how much her company meant to him. The night ended a lot faster than he had wanted it to and he was almost disappointed when Natasha announced it was time to head home.

“Coffee?” he flashed her a cheesy smile, hoping to mimic her signature one that she tends to give him when she wants a favor.

She laughed, but nodded.

“Trying to keep up,  _ Captain _ ?” her voice was flirtatious and if only she knew what she was doing to him with those eyes and her frisky smile.

“I--,” For a split second, he was going to tell her the truth.

He just really wanted to spend this alone time they were having together for a little bit longer. Sure, they lived in the same building and she was literally just down the hall. Except they always had the ears and eyes of everyone else and this outing just seemed  _ nice _ .

“Did you need to get back?” he asked instead.

She shook her head.

“All yours,” she linked her arm with his. “Where are we going?”

Steve had them get on the subway, where more eyes were on them. Although not one single person dared to get close to them or even utter a word directly their way. There were just a lot of whispers and phones discretely coming up to capture the moment between the two Avengers.

The intention was to get off at a stop in Brooklyn, where Steve knew of an old spot that served decent coffee and more snacks (because he could always eat). When Natasha made a comment that she had never walked the Brooklyn Bridge before, he decided she would get to tonight. There were some protesting on her end as she claimed it is rather cold out and walking across water would only make it colder.

So they stopped at a random coffee shop right by the path to the bridge. He assured her the warm cup of coffee in her hand would help with the coldness and he could sacrifice his coat as he wore a long sleeve anyway and the super serum did wonders on keeping him warm. His gestures and suggestions were enough for her to agree and walk across the bridge.

In the few times that Steve had walked the bridge, it was always crowded. Tonight, nearly midnight and on a cold November night, there were maybe three people far ahead of them and maybe four more behind them. It was nice and peaceful--as peaceful as the city life could give.

“Well,” Natasha began. “I’m glad you talked me into this.”

“It’s something you just gotta do,” he nudge her playfully with his elbow.

She flickered her eyes at him and then linked her arm around his again. A small gesture she occasional did that Steve hoped she would never stop doing. Natasha was not known for warm physical contacts with anyone. She remained reserved with a lot of things and that usually meant hugs, touches, and emotional connections were only shared with selected people. Which was quite the opposite of the Black Widow--who had no boundaries and was willing to invade anyone’s space to make her kill.

The one mile walk across the bridge was rather short and Steve knew it was time for them to head back, as much as he could wander the city that never sleeps with his favorite Russian, her could tell she was tired.

\---

**Incident Three:**

“Morning,” Tony greeted him with overly dramatic puckered lips.

Steve gave him a puzzled look and headed for the coffee. He glanced around the room and found no sight of Natasha. It was odd for her not to be awake by now, although they did stay up fairly late even after arriving back at the tower.

“Morninggggggggggggg,” Wanda practically sang as she stirred her coffee at the dining table.

Steve sent her the same puzzled look he had given Tony. Generally, they did not talk too much in the morning, especially Stark. In fact, he was never really at the Tower this early. For the most part, he showed up halfway through the day and that was only if he needed to make his presence known. Usually, during the quiet times, he spent it at home with Pepper.

“What happened?” Steve groaned, realizing Tony’s presence and Wanda’s sing-sang voice were not just because they were two chipper beings.

Wanda smiled, grinning from ear to ear. While Tony grabbed his laptop eagerly.

“You two make me vomit,” he scuffed as he placed the laptop on the counter for Steve to look at.

Of course, it was an article published about him and Natasha and freshly taken videos from last night. He scrolled through the article, feeling his ears heat up at the words he scanned through. He did his best not to read too into it as he had Tony and Wanda’s eyes watching him closely. There were pictures of them at the winter village, and then walking arm in arm towards the subway, and extremely cozy ones of them walking across the Brooklyn bridge. The captured moment had their arms linked, and it looked like Steve had been telling Natasha something and she was smiling at him--looking at him. Steve hardly remembered that and it was probably because whoever took it just happened to catch the perfect split second.

“We were just hanging out,” he spoke, looking up from the laptop.

“Rhodey and Sam were hanging out last night,” Tony pointed out. “I don’t see headlines of them.”

“In their defense,” Wanda spoke up. “Steve and Natasha have been the public’s favorite pair because you know, they scream ‘doing it.’ And they’ve been giving the public a lot of appearances these days. Rhodey and Same are to be determined.” she giggled at her last remark.

Steve felt his jaw drop at Wanda’s words. She was hardly one to say something like that and he was not aware she was even up-to-date with the latest tabloids out there.

“Wanda and Vision were out and about last night, I don’t see them being plastered all over the internet,” Tony noted.

“I can literally torture people with my mind, they wouldn’t dare,” Wanda sneered.

“I mean let me just quote….” Tony turned the laptop to him. “Captain America and the Black Widow were all smiles again walking throughout the city. This is the fourth time in a span of ten days that the two have been cozying it up in the Big Apple. Could it be that the long-rumored duo are finally settling down?”

As Tony read, Steve felt his face turn red.

“Steve Rogers and Natasha Romanoff have been linked together for years, neither one ever acknowledging the public with their relationship outside their work. But as multiple sources and witnesses have noticed, the two have had the hots for each other for years now,” Tony barely could get the last part in without falling into a laughing fit.

“Okay stop,” Steve rolled his eyes. “We were just hanging out.”

Tony Stark would have kept going and probably could have gotten a lot out of Captain America, because he was a lot easier to grill than the Black Widow, but he let it go because the redhead stepped into the kitchen.

“Morning Nat!” Wanda grinned, her ear to ear smile making its comeback.

“Morning,” Natasha mumbled, passing through Steve as she headed for the coffee.

“Did you just wake up?” Steve asked, it was almost ten in the morning and Natasha was not known to sleep anywhere past eight.

She was already out of her sleepwear though and he could tell she had showered based on her freshly blow dried hair.

“A little while ago,” she nodded, mixing her drink.

Tony whistled, which just caused Natasha to throw him a glare.

“Late night?” Wanda asked, her cheesy smile was very hard to ignore.

Steve just shook his head as he watched her smile widen towards Natasha.

“Yeah, the winter village had a lot of nice things to look at and then we walked the Brooklyn Bridge,” Natasha explained casually, clueless to the reason behind Wanda’s corny smile. “How was your movie?”

“Oh it was good,” Wanda spoke too excitedly for a simple answer.

“Well you sound like you had a good night,” Natasha raised her eyebrow, her eyes locked with Steve’s as she took a sip of her coffee.

“I did.” Wanda nodded. “But sounds like you had an even better night!”

Natasha looked at her, her facial expression displaying a sense of bewilderment but she shook it off right away.

“Yeah it was a good night,” she smiled, walking over towards the sofa, near Steve. “You still want brunch?” her voice was low enough to show her intended purpose was just to ask him--but of course, both Tony and Wanda’s ears perked up at her question.

“Yeah,” Steve did his best to ignore the two pairs of eyes practically burning into his back. “How much time do you need to get ready?”

“After this coffee?” she asked. “Just need to wake up.”

Natasha had caught Tony and Wanda staring at them and she eye them curiously.

“Did you two want to go?” she raised her eyebrow at them.

“Nope!” The two answered in unison.

Natasha turned her head back and focused on drinking her coffee. Tony took that time to excuse himself for the day and Steve headed upstairs to change. Wanda stayed in her chair and it took everything in her to not bombard Natasha with questions. She longed for the day where Natasha was just as easy as Steve to pester about silly things--like what the tabloids write about. Instead she sighed, and apparently too loudly because the Russian spy turned her head towards her.

“You okay?” Natasha asked.

Wanda nodded.

“I’m just really glad you had a good night,” she smiled.

Natasha’s face showed confusion and part of Wanda had wished she went on to question such random statement. But it was Natasha and she never asked unnecessary questions, so their conversation ended there.

“Thanks,” was all Natasha let out before focusing back on her coffee.

\------

**Incident Four:**

Steve did his best not to let the events of the morning show as he walked with Natasha by his side. He was not bothered by what was said about them, he flattered to be honest. They looked good together from what he could see and while the public did not know the story behind any of the captured moments they have been lucky to witness, the pictures were still something Steve was a little thankful for. They gave him a glimpse of how he and Natasha looked together. The only thing he was afraid of was Natasha getting her hands on all the things about them and it makes her second guess their time spent together. He knew he her well know and if she was aware just how talked about they were, she would probably ease up on their public outings. It was selfish but Steve really enjoyed their mellow adventures out and about.

“We should probably train soon,” Natasha spoke as they walked.

It was a Friday morning and there were actually a lot of people out and about. It was cold out but the sun was out and it could easily classify as a nice day.

“Sure?” Steve answered.

Training was really far from his mind because he was perfectly fine not thinking about battles for a while.

“We keep going out to eat,” Natasha pointed out. “I’m going to get fat.”

Steve laughed at her comment.

He figured the training comment was because she wanted to prepare for future scenarios--not because she wanted the exercise.

“You are more than welcome to join me for my morning jogs,” he grinned, pressing the crosswalk button.

“I probably should,” she agreed. “At the rate of our eating habits, I need it.”

Steve wanted to tell her no. She was perfect, beautiful. There was nothing that she had to worry about, except he never got the words out and they just went on to discuss exercising tomorrow.

The little restaurant was a fairly quick walk for them, which Steve was glad. He could see people from the corner of his eyes looking at them. No matter how much they covered themselves--sunglasses, scarves, or hats, they still stood out. It was most likely Natasha’s striking red hair and the fact that he was Captain America, his built caused more eye glances than he wanted to admit.

“Ah, the beautiful superheros,” the older waitress greeted them as they walked inside.

They were known to eat breakfasts at the joint frequently, sometimes with the whole time and more often than not, just the two of them.

“I always knew you two were always my favorite. My two favorite couple,” the waitress giggled as she walked them over to a booth.

Steve smiled, awkwardly and his eyes darted to Natasha at the word “couple.” However, she just smiled back, friendly and genuine. It was enough to wash the discomfort away from Steve’s constantly worried thoughts.

“I probably should have something besides waffles for once,” Natasha spoke once the waitress left to get their drinks.

“So that means I should get waffles?” Steve smirked at her. “So you can steal some and get your waffle fix?”

“I always knew you were my favorite,” Natasha playfully mimicked their waitress’ tone.

Steve wished she would stop doing things that made his heart flutter. But he knew better. There was nothing she could do about it because even just looking at her across the table as she bit her bottom lip deciding on what to eat was making him fall for her deeper.

Maybe he should take those published articles of them to as a sign that he needed to stop spending so much time with her because he was in big trouble.

“Okay, I think I know what I want,” she sat the menu down.

A group of people walked passed them, whispering and giggling at the sight of Captain America and the Black Widow. Steve concluded Natasha had to notice that too. She had to be aware and he wondered if she ever thought about it. If it ever crossed her mind as to why there were so many rumors about them.

After they ordered, the waitress gave them both cheeky smiles again and they politely return it.

“Hi!” A little girl walked up to their table, her big brown eyes wide as she stared at them.

Steve was startled at the tiny hands that grabbed the edge of their table, but Natasha just wrinkled her forehead in bewilderment.

No one ever really approached them in public. This was new. She was also far too young to know who they were.

“I like your hair,” the child smiled, pointing at Natasha’s hair. “So pretty.”

“Why thank you,” Natasha return the smile. “I love your bow,” she complemented the child in return.

Steve watched their interaction and it was not the first time he has seen her with children. Natasha had been a loving aunt each time they visited the Bartons or whenever she received a video call from the kids. She always showed her soft side and Steve wondered if at one point in her life, she ever considered having a family of her own.

“You’re very pretty,” The little girl went on, giggling each time Natasha thanked her.

“I am so sorry,” A woman—probably the mother—grabbed the child. “You do not do that!” she hissed loudly, dragging the little girl back towards their table. “You don’t know them, they’re could be dangerous.” The woman’s voice was fading as she got further away, but Steve and Natasha could still hear her lecture the child. “Goodness child, that’s Captain America and Black Widow, you can’t do that! They’re—she’s dangerous.”

Steve could see Natasha stiffen at the last comment the woman made. Her face remained blank, which was hard for Steve to analyze if she was hurt or just shocked by the words.

“I think you two make a lovely couple,” An older woman behind Steve spoke. “I’m so glad you’re finally getting a break from all your heroic acts and just focusing on being in love,” she ranted.

“Leave them alone Sue,” the older man across from the woman rolled his eyes as he picked at his food.

Steve tried his best not to turn around fully as he could tell the older woman was directly behind, their booths were connected and her presence felt very close.

“Thanks but we’re just friends,” He explained, his eyes focused on Natasha.

For a brief second, he could have sworn that she was taken aback by his choice of answer. Almost as if she was actually alarmed at what he had just let out.

“Friends?” The old woman questioned rather loudly. “That’s not what all the magazines say! And I’ve read over ten of them,” she noted.

“Can’t believe everything that they write,” Natasha pointed out. “That’s why I never read them.”

—

“That was a strange brunch,” Natasha said as soon as they stepped out the restaurant, only to be greeted by literally a million cameras.

The paparazzis were really out to get them now that they’ve given them plenty to write about over the past few weeks.

“Oh god,” Natasha groaned softly at the sight.

Steve pulled her close to him, which was probably not a good idea. He did his best to wrap a protective arm around Natasha and guide them away from the crowd and snapping cameras. She gripped his hand once they made their way past the walls of people trying to capture every moment. And Steve was not sure when he managed to intertwine their fingers, or how Natasha even allowed that.

“I guess it comes with the reputation?” Natasha laughed as they turned the street, still hand in hand. “They have gotten very hungry for you lately.”

_ Only because I’ve been seen with you daily _ , he wanted to add.

“Sorry,” it was all he could say, even though he was fully aware they both played a massive role in the situation, except Natasha may not know just how much the public has been going on about her.

“No,” she shook her head. “I should be sorry. I might be damaging your reputation,” she let out a soft laugh. “That could hurt your dating pool.”

_ I don’t think I even have a dating pool to begin with _ , Steve thought to himself.

“I’m pretty sure I don’t have any candidates willing to compete when it’s you they see me with regular,” Steve said it as joke, but the expression on Natasha’s face said otherwise.

She actually looked like she felt bad for getting in the way, which was not his intentions at all. He had just wanted to lightly hint at her that he has been linked to her for so long according to the tabloids, there was definitely zero chances they would ever have dates with anyone else.

“I mean I don’t think people will buy that you’re actually with me like that,” she tried to reason. “They would not expect the golden boy to be with me, so you should still be an eligible candidate,” she flashed him a smile.

If only she knew just how obsessed people were over the two of them and how sure he was that there would be another article about them printed by tomorrow, maybe even tonight.

“Should we go burn off breakfast?” Natasha asked when they got to an intersection between turning towards the direction of the tower or further into the city.

“How about we go for a walk around the park?” Steve asked, his voice between playful and hopeful.

“Okay,” she nodded and Steve squeezed her hand as he led them to the opposite direction of the Tower.

That was the second he could have sworn Natasha was about to pull her hand away, but instead she just moved closer to him and he knew he was in major trouble as he felt the need to look at her. Her face soft, relax, and she looked comfortable as their fingers locked together and her left hand resting on his right arm.

He decided she would be the death of him.

“I’m actually excited for the park because I wanted peanuts,” she giggled lightly.

_ Yup _ , Steve a goner.

During their walk through the city, a street vendor had magazines—magazines with their faces largely displayed on them and that was when Natasha finally let go of his hand. He was sad at the lost of contact, but he eyed her curiosity as she lifted a magazine off the rack.

“I always knew I’d look good on a magazine cover,” she joked and Steve returned the amused look as they made eye contact.

Much to his surprise, she sat the magazine back down and gesture for his arm.

“You’re not one bit curious to read about it?” He asked as they continued to walk.

He felt her head shake against his shoulder.

“It’s actually flattering to be plastered on magazine covers next to you,” she spoke. “Because I don’t think I should even be an accessory to you—

“You’re not an accessory,” he interrupted.

“But for people to take the time and write about it, well what can I say?” she laughed. “I’ll take any rumors that I’m apparently dating Captain America, gives a boost to the ego.”

Steve chuckled at her words but he had a hard time grasping at how lightly she could take it. And how she can easily shrug off things like that. He was having a difficult time getting the pictures of them from last night out of his head. Plus he wanted to tell her that it was her that was giving him the ego boost.

——

**Incident Five:**

Saturday came and Tony was constantly calling them to remind each one of them that their presence was very expected at the charity event at 3pm and if they flaked on him, he would make their lives a living hell because this event was important to his reputation.

So they all showed up. It was for a good cause, but it was also a rather hectic event because there were so many reporters. Of course Tony Stark was hamming up the publicity. Sam was just eager to taste all the finger foods. Wanda was just like a teenager, not happy to be there, but she forced a smile and worked the spinning booth anyway.

Steve made small talks to whoever approached him and he was extremely revealed to see Natasha making her way towards him after the reported kept asking him about his life.

“Hey,” she greeted him, politely smiling at the camera. “I just came to see if you wanted to try some of these booths.”

“And Agent Romanoff to the rescue,” the overly animated reported gushed. “It’s so nice to see the team here, working booths and mingling with the civilians. Completely different from your day to day fighting crime, right?”

Natasha nodded at the reporter.

“Yeah it’s nice to take a break for a bit,” she elaborated.

“It sure is,” the reporter was practically ogling the both of them. “Now do you two ever consider retiring from this life and settling down? Have a family on your own? Just live the normal life?”

Natasha nodded again, which actually was surprising to Steve.

“Sure,” she spoke. “One day.”

“Ya hear that Captain?” The reported giggled. “Might be time to step down soon and start a family.”

Steve was definitely blushing and Natasha was just urging him to move away.

The reported just watched them leave, throwing farewells at them with her animated voice.

“How about we take this to the bar?” Natasha asked. “I could use a drink.”

They most of their time drinking and talking it up with the others. Natasha ranted about how irritated she is with Clint for the moment because he wants her to babysit all three of his children while he takes Laura on a well deserved vacation. But the skilled Russian spy cannot find herself to be okay with the idea of being alone in a house with three children for five days.

All Steve did was reassure her that she would be fine, but if she wanted an extra pair of hands, he would tackle that mission with her. She didn’t turn down the idea so he made sure to keep his schedule free the first week of December, if the world allowed him. He really wanted to ask her about her agreement to eventually settling down. He had considered stepping away from the heroic life multiple times before but never found it in him to say it out loud. He also never though Natasha would let their lifestyle go. She seemed always eager for the next mission and he figured she would do this until the very end.

The words never came out and instead, they just drank until Tony came to flash them his egotistic smile and announced his departure.

“Get your woman home safely,” Tony eyed him and the gave him an irritating wink and Steve was just glad that Natasha was liquored up to pay attention, or to let the scene get to her.

Tony left to find Pepper and Steve rubbed his face.

“Home?” He asked, offering a hand to let her off the stool.

She gladly took his hand and hopped off.

“I don’t want to go home yet,” she giggled, clutching onto his arm. “Take me anywhere else,” she purred and Steve wished she was not so close to him.

He could smell her shampoo and feel her body so pressed up against him, he was practically resighting saints in his head.

“Are you drunk?” He asked, helping her walk.

“Nope,” she giggled again. “Almost though.”

She let go of his hand and fixed herself. She seemed to have found the needs to recollect herself as they made their way towards the exit.

From afar, Steve caught a sigh of Wanda and Sam, making their way out and what looked like a bunch of flashing lights as the doors swung open.

“Great,” Natasha sighed.

Steve instinctively wrapped an arm around her protectively as they pushed the door open to the bright camera flashes. Natasha buried her face into his chest as he made way for them through all the shouts and flashes.

_ “How long has it been?” _

_ “Can you tell us about your relationship?” _

_ “Agent Romanoff! What’s it really dating Captain America?” _

_ “Captain! What’s it like dating the Black Widow?” _

Steve gripped her shoulder tighter as she buried her face deeper into his chest with every question thrown, avoiding the rather bright flashes against the evening sky.

“Never expected you to be camera shy,” Steve chuckled as they reached the SUV, where Sam and Wanda were waiting for them.

“I’m not,” Natasha defended, climbing into the car. “I just didn’t want--” She paused to look at him. “I may have done the opposite of my intentions actually. I was trying to hide myself so you wouldn’t wake up to us all over the news, but clinging onto you was probably not that way to do it.”

“No, it was not,” Sam answered from the front seat. “But I will be enjoying this segment on Captain America and Black Widow tomorrow,” the goofy grin on his face could be heard from the tone of his voice.

“Why do you even bother keeping up with those?” Natasha rolled her eyes.

“How about we all go get pizza?” Wanda suggested.

\----

**Incident Six:**

It was weeks after the whole winter village event that Steve finally went off on his own to find Natasha a present. He was getting pretty antsy at all the random events Tony kept throwing their way because Natasha’s birthday was three days away, it hardly left him time to find her something. He walked into the mall clueless as ever on what to even get her. He thought women liked jewelry and he tried to think if Natasha even really wore much of them. Sometimes he sees her wear earrings and small necklaces, so it sounded like a safe gift to give her.

He hoped nobody would notice him. The mall was crowded, it was Saturday after all and Thanksgiving was around the corner. The stores were busy with people scattering around, especially the jewelry store where men gathered around to get their significant other a romantic gift. He walked into the jewelry store and his face flushed at all the options. There were so many and the workers just stood watching his every move. They had to notice the clueless guy looking at the counter.

Finally a female worker approached him and asked if he needed help. He informed her that he wanted to get a necklace as a birthday present, but all the options were overwhelming. She was kind enough to narrow it for him and asked if he had a specific stone in mind. He most definitely did not.

“How about November’s birthstone?” He thought out loud, considering that was a good idea.

It was thoughtful and friendly enough to where Natasha would not freak out on him for buying her jewelry. He could already see the puzzled look on her face at his rather domestic gesture. Except friends could give friends their birthstone, that sounded normal.

The worker showed him heart-shaped necklaces with the topaz stone and Steve had to shy himself away from that. Natasha would probably kill him once she opened the jewelry box and discovered a heart-shaped necklace. His eyes eventually landed on an infinity necklace, with a small topaz stone in the middle and that was the winner.

He was actually proud of his findings for her and made his way out of the store, thinking about what to get her for Christmas. Maybe the Christmas gift could wait because it already took all his energy to find her a birthday present.

“Hey Steve,” Wanda’s knowing smile greeted him as he approached the mall exit.

“Goodness,” he groaned. “Why are you here?”

“Having a girls day with Nat,” she grinned and then Natasha was behind her.

Steve was glad he had tucked away the little bag in his coat pocket because Wanda would most likely question him and Natasha would have thrown him odd looks by now.

“What are  _ you  _ doing here?” Natasha asked, her eyes narrowing him down.

“Just thought I’d browse for some presents since it looks like we’re all going to be spending Christmas laying low for once,” he said confidently.

It was half the truth, except he was really there for her birthday present and he actually had not thought about getting the rest of the team anything for Christmas.

“I like gift cards,” Wanda informed him and he rolled his eyes.

She looked back at Natasha, gesturing for them to go.

“Later Soldier,” Natasha flashed him a smile. “She made appointments for us to get our nails done.”

Steve could see the playful discomfort in her face, but he also knew she was actually enjoying doing all these normal civilian things.

“I’ve never gotten my nails done before,” Wanda spoke. “Next time we’re going to get massages and maybe haircuts?”

“I like my hair,” Natasha scolded the idea instantly.

Steve wanted to chime in and tell her he did too, but he just smiled at them and waved his way out.

—-

They were alone in her room for once. Steve had to look around because he hardly ever saw her living compound. For some odd reason, they mainly spent time in his (probably because Natasha always broke into his room) or as a group in the common room. He studied the room and it was exactly how he had imagined it—if he had to imagine Natasha’s room. Her bed was not made as he sat on it, but he was surprised to know that her bedsheets were a soft lavender color. Natasha mainly wore black,  _ that was new _ .

She had two books on nightstand that also had a lamp and a half drank water bottle. She had a chair that had clothes on it and that was pretty much it. They all had basic rooms, but out of all of them, Natasha probably had the most strip down one. His room at least had shelves and pictures. Which gave him the idea that maybe he should get her something for her room for Christmas.

“Did you just come visit me just to stare at my blank wall?” Natasha smirked at him.

“No,” he answered quickly. “I wanted to ask you—“ he felt himself swallow the upcoming words. “Uhh—tomorrow, it’s your birthday—“

She raised her eyebrow at him.

“Do you want to go get dinner and celebrate?” He asked, feeling flushed at Natasha’s eyes, piercing into his.

“You don’t have to celebrate my birthday, Steve,” the way she said his name triggered something in him. “I’ve never celebrated it as far as I know.”

“Even more reason to go out?” He tried. “We’re finally not doing anything for once, might as well go all out like Wanda said, right?”

“If you really want to,” she shrugged. “But I won’t be offended if we don’t. I never think about my birthday.

“Tomorrow at 6 then?” He flashed her a smile.

She returned the smile and he felt a sense of relief wash over him.

“Sort of uhh,” he hesitated on the right description for where he intended to take them. “I guess it’s a dressy restaurant.”

Natasha just nodded, a soft smile on her lips.

For all the times they go out to eat and he asks he to join him on anything and everything, asking her out for her birthday was the hardest question to utter.

As he walked out of his room, Wanda walked passed him and he instantly rolled his eyes at her ear to ear smile.

“Seriously,” he groaned and she just giggled, walking towards Vision’s door.

—-

“Why didn’t you tell me it’s her birthday?” Wanda asked him annoyed.

“She doesn’t really want to do anything about it,” he defended. “So don’t make a big deal about it,” he shot her a look as he heard footsteps coming from the hall.

“You’re making a big deal about it,” Wanda rolled her eyes. “You look like you’re going to a movie premiere.”

Steve just ignored her as Natasha made her way to him, wearing a wine colored dress. He could not see much of it as she had her black peacoat on, but he felt his mind doing more than just wondering what the whole dress looked like.

“Happ—“

Steve shot Wanda a glare.

“Happy almost Thanksgiving,” she hugged Natasha who returned the embrace. “Why are you guys dressed so nicely?” she decided to play the clueless person that Steve insisted on.

“Steve wants to try out some restaurant,” Natasha answered casually. “And I never say no to a free meal,” she winked at Wanda.

“Well you look beautiful, Nat,” the Scarlet Witch smiled. “Have fun!”

“Ready?” Steve asked. 

Natasha nodded, turning towards the hallway.

“Enjoy dinner,” Wanda spoke. “I’ll be reading about it, I’m sure,” she added in a hush tone to Steve only.

“No Christmas present for you,” Steve whispered back, to which she just pouted and rolled her eyes.

The Rainbow Room restaurant was far from them, which was why he had a driver waiting outside the Tower—something Natasha had not expected because she made a comment that was ready to walk across the city.

Steve knew he was going overboard and she will probably yell at him later for making her birthday a big deal, but didn’t care. One thing about Natasha, she would take it like a champ and he hopes somewhere while sucking up the “overboardness” of her birthday, she enjoys it too. Because honestly, as Steve fixed his tie and clutched the little box in his pocket, he felt foolish. Like a love struck boy, trying to win over a girl who never once batted her eyes at him.

Except Natasha was actually all smiles, even when there were paparazzis outside the restaurant, snapping pictures of them. She seemed flattered when they sat down, as she commented on their view that overlooked the city.

“I figured we never celebrate your birthday, so here’s to that,” Steve spoke, wondering when was the appropriate time to actually give her a present.

“Thanks,” she smiled. “It’s really nice,” she took off her coat, revealing her perfectly fitting dress and all Steve could think about was how it highlighted all her perfect features.

He was in for a long night.

\--------

He was going to wait until they got back to the Tower, that way he could just hand her the gift and head off to his room, avoiding the awkwardness that might take over after Natasha eyes him down for getting her a gift--let alone a necklace.

“You live in a beautiful state, Steve,” Natasha acknowledge, her eyes focused on the twinkling lights below.

Her voice was almost like a whisper, even though they were alone on the balcony and the city noise was oddly not heard high above.

“Thanks for showing me all of this,” she added, turning her head to face him. “And thanks for dinner.”

He gave her a genuine smile and he wished he was not such a coward when it came to talking to women--especially the one in front of him who was making his heart beat.

“I got you something,” he spoke, stepping closer towards Natasha.

She turned her whole body to face him, a questioning look on her face.

“You really didn’t have to,” she whine, but a playful laugh could be heard in her voice.

“Here,” Steve met her eyes and handed her the small box.

She looked at the item in his hand and looked back at him before accepting the gift, slowly, never breaking eye contact.

Steve watched as she opened the box.

“Happy Birthday, Nat,” he said, his voice coming out more affectionately that he had intended.

“Oh,” she gasped. “Wow.”

She looked up at him and Steve was sure she was holding back tears. Her eyes seemed watery, but she smiled at him.

“Thank you, Steve,” she said tenderly. “This means a lot.”

She reached her arm up for a hug, carefully holding onto the box, and Steve wrapped his arms around her. They have touched many times before, but there had only been less than a handful of times where they hugged for the sincerity of the moment. She hung onto him tightly and Steve held on for as long as she wanted. It was a long hug and when she looked up at him, arms still wrapped around his neck, he wanted to lean in for a kiss. To tell her she looked so beautiful and everything felt so right with her in his arms. But the coward that he was did none of those things. Instead her met her green eyes and just got lost in them.

He almost thought Natasha was going to lean in for a kiss, but she just placed a soft peck on his cheek. It was enough of a gesture to make his heart flutter. Still, he scolded himself for not kissing her. Then again, Natasha may have freaked if he made that sudden move.

Natasha pulled away to open the box and take the necklace out.

“It’s your birthstone,” He pointed out.

She looked at him for a moment, her fingers touching the infinity shape and the little stone in the center.

“I--” for once, Natasha was speechless.

She was a woman with words, and she knew her way around them. Only this time, she was truly out of words to describe how touched she felt that Steve had taken her out for her birthday and then presented her with a thoughtful gift. For starters, she had never been given a gift. Not that she can recall. Or at least not one that was meaningful. She also could not remember ever being greeted a “Happy Birthday” in her entire life.

“Thank you,” she repeated, pulling Steve into a lingering hug again.

\-----

He expected it. It was basically an article on his whole night out with Natasha. The pictures began when they stepped out of the car, it showed them sitting down eating dinner, and then oddly, someone managed to capture them at the balcony.

“Everything okay with you?” Natasha asked curiously as Steve slammed his laptop shut.

She stood by his door, arms folded across her chest.

“Uh yeah,” he nodded and she just narrowed her eyes at him, not buying it. “Just reading,” he added.

She still was not buying it, but she did not pester him for anything further. It was another thing he liked about Natasha. She understood boundaries and she never pushed for any information that he withheld, because she knew him well enough. She knew that if he wanted to tell her and felt that it was of importance, he will share, if he not, she let it go. Because much like him, she was also a private person. Natasha shared what she wanted with him and he felt that she let him in on a lot more than she really should.

“So you really never read magazines?” Steve decided to attempt the conversation.

Natasha gave him a questioning look but shook her head.

“I’m more a book person,” she shrugged. “Why?”

“Just wondering,” Steve spoke.

“Are they getting to you?” She asked, sitting on his bed. “Because we can lay off on the public outings if they’re getting to you.” She offered, her tone softer than usual. “It doesn’t really bother me.”

Steve shook his head.

“It doesn’t bother me,” he spoke truthfully.

He hated to admit it, but he liked being able to look back at their moments and fall in love with her even more when he gets to witness the little things the camera was able to capture when he was too busy talking. The pictures were an invasion of privacy, except there was hardly anything private about his life and it was probably another reason why it did not bother him.

“I was worried that it bothered you,” he caught her eyes with his.

“I told you, it’s actually flattering, but then again, I don’t know what they’re really saying,” she shrugged, laying down on his bed and Steve had to force himself not to think about how good surrounded by his navy blue sheets.

“They usually write about us being romantically involved,” he said. “And usually lots of pictures and then some insider talking about what they witnessed.”

Natasha propped herself up on her elbows and Steve felt those too common flutters again as he caught a glimpse of the necklace around her neck. The necklace had looked beautiful in its box, but it looked even better on Natasha.

“They’ll eventually see you with someone and then I’m sure that’ll start the next round of rumors,” she reasoned. “Once we bounce onto missions and we give them less chances to see us out and about, it’ll fade.”

Steve shrugged. She was right. The media would eventually give up on them once they get back to working because there will be no daily outings for them. But reading those articles had gotten into Steve’s head. He began to question the what ifs on Natasha’s end. What if she did feel the way for him like the articles noted? What if they were seeing something they weren’t? He knew how he felt for her, but when it came to her reciprocating the feelings? He was clueless. The media however, they claim that the Black Widow only had eyes for him.

“Anyway,” Natasha laid on her side, her hand propping her head up. “I just wanted to thank you again,” she smiled. “I’m not sure if I got it all out last night because I was really taken aback. I’ve never celebrated my birthday before, let alone received a gift, so thank you.”

Steve smiled at her.

“Anytime, Nat.”

Natasha returned the smile and silence fell between them. She considered that moment to stand up and give him a hug or  _ something _ . He was mirroring her eyes--he had to be  _ somewhat _ on the same page as her. She looked down at his lips and thought for a moment,  _ what if _ ? And then Steve turned around to face his laptop.

“Steve,” she called out softly.

He turned back around to face her and she felt all the butterflies in her stomach as she locked eyes with his very blue orbs. She patted the empty space on the bed, hoping he would come sit or lounge with her. He smiled, slightly reluctant but he stood up and hopped on the bed.

“Yes?” He raised his eyebrow, laying on his back, facing the ceiling.

“Nothing,” Natasha spoke soft, sighing as she let her arm fall down and rest her head against the pillow, facing the ceiling much like Steve.

They laid on Steve’s bed in silence, just their breathing taking over.

“I’m falling in love with you,” Steve let out, his voice surprisingly at ease.

Natasha turned her head to face him, although his gaze remained up.

“Or I’m already in love with you,” he said, still avoiding eye contact.

Natasha opened her mouth to say something-- _ anything _ . She knows Steve and that took a lot of courage to even admit. He was terrible when it came to letting his emotions play out, much like her. Only she never found the courage to really tell him how much she enjoys spending time with him and that maybe,  _ just _ maybe--she finally knew what being in love meant too--because of him. She wanted to tell him how glad she is he spoke up first, how he managed to break that door open so they could finally discuss the topic of ‘ _ us _ ’. Yet nothing came out. And Steve was still looking up at the ceiling.

“I know this is going to make things weird and I--I--I’m sorry if it does but--,” he paused, turning his head to finally meet Natasha’s wide eyes. “I needed to tell you because you haven’t left my mind in months--or even years,” he explained, feeling extremely vulnerable as Natasha just stared at him. “And it’s been distracting.”

Natasha lifted a hand to touch the necklace hanging on her neck. Her fingers fiddled with the gem as she tried to find the words to say to Steve. It was just so him to have her speechless. She was a woman of many words, but those sparkling blue eyes looking at her with admiration, hope, and reassurance was a lot to take in. So instead, she reached over and caressed his chin, a soft smile forming on Steve’s lips.

“You’re definitely a lot braver than me,” Natasha admitted, biting her lower lip. “I was just going to let us dance around the--,” she paused to find the words. “Well  _ tension _ ,” she laughed lightly, “and then hope it slips out sooner than later.”

Steve grinned at her. So she was  _ very _ aware and it was not one-sided.

Natasha lifted her head up, placing her hand on his cheek as she closed the distance between them and her lips crashed onto his.


End file.
